Traffic Safety Reminders: to keep our kids and families safe in our narrow traffic corridor we ask you to

• please use crosswalks
• please do not park to pick up your children unless you have an appointment (the parking lot is getting very crowded-children and parents crossing in front of exiting cars and we had a near btn

Officer Tim will be giving friendly warnings starting next week. Jaywalking tickets are $115.

• Half-Day Tomorrow: Friday, May 18 is a scheduled half-day. School ends at 12:00.
• CST testing is complete. OTA had 1 week to complete our testing before we had to turn the tests back in. 95% of students were tested which is great for year one.
• Traffic Safety Reminders: to keep our kids and families safe in our narrow traffic corridor we ask you to please use crosswalks and please do not park to pick up your children unless you have an appointment. Officer Tim will be giving warnings starting next week. Jaywalking tickets are $115.
• 6th Grade is safely back from a great Science/Outdoor Ed trip at Camp Fox on Catalina. Thank you to parent-chaperones Dave Cain and Claudia Valenzuela, and to Mr. Major for making this once-in-a-lifetime experience possible for the 6th graders.
• Biking for Brains/Wounded Warrior ride ends tomorrow when Mr. Lehr arrives in Savannah, Georgia at the end of his 2904 mile ride.
• And, most important! 6th grade teacher, Mr Cohick and his wife, Julie have a new baby boy: Gabriel Mark 7 lbs, 14 oz 19 inches,
  OTA class of 2023.

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4th Grade Students – “Tea Painting”

There has been some confusion among current OTA parents and guardians about the lottery: If I already filed an “Intent to Re-Enroll” form why was I entered in the lottery? Why am I receiving an acceptance letter now?

Here is the explanation:

• OTA follows federal guidelines for running our Charter School lottery; and under the guidelines all students go into the lottery.
• Current students get a lottery number (Why? The lottery number allows us to sort any siblings on our wait lists) and then get an automatic exemption and an acceptance letter.
• All students who receive an acceptance letter have until May 25th to confirm they plan to attend OTA and reserve their spot for the 2012-2013 school year. OTA will have waiting lists in all grades but 8th, so it is very important that you respond by May 25th to reserve your child’s spot.

Thank You for Your Support of Old Town Academy.

— The OTA Admissions Team

PS look in the subject line of your email to see what grade your child is being accepted into:  Continue reading →

OTA second grader Parker Olenick is visiting Poland for a Neurosensorimotor Reflex Integration camp with a renowned doctor Svetlana Masgutova. He’s having quite an adventure and you can follow his progress here.

Sunday was arrival day for most. The rain arrived with them, but that did not deter us from having a great time playing games and swimming in the pool. Our first session was the “meet and greet”, where Dr. Svetlana Masgutova spoke about all the wonderful research she is doing and the amazing progress the children (and adults) are making. The room was filled with hopeful anticipation for another successful camp. This camp has 26 participants, with most of them being children of varying abilities and challenges. The most exciting part was to see that all of our friends from last year’s camp have made a lot of progress.

 

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Dear OTA Parents and Guardians: Please note the city has activated the new No Stopping Zone to allow cars entering the gate to drop-off or pick up children to move over out of the bike lane.

• Please move over against the curb whenever possible when lined up to enter the gate (we are working on educating the neighborhood about the new system so the no stopping zones area will actually be free of cars!).
• Please note the times to avoid getting a ticket.

No Stopping 7:30-8:30 AM; 2:30-3:30 PM School Days.

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Welcome back!  We hope everyone had a restful spring break.  All unclaimed Lost & Found items from Q3 were donated to AmVets.  The number of unclaimed jackets and sweatshirts, sweaters, lunch boxes, and water bottles was a little overwhelming last quarter. To help keep us our inventory manageable for the fourth quarter, PLEASE take the time to:

Write your child’s name and grade, in permanent marker:

• On the tags of his/her jackets & sweaters;
• On their lunchboxes and water bottles.

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Dear OTA Parents and Guardians, a few Safety Reminders from Officer Tim (San Diego Police Dept Traffic Dept):

• Parents have noticed more drivers making u-turns lately to enter the playground driveway, especially those arriving late. This is very dangerous both to pedestrians, bikers, and drivers– a biker and car almost collided this morning.

*** The key to a successful drop-off and pick-up is to have all drivers approach the school from the south and treat San Diego Avenue as a one-way street!
See below for a map.***

• Parents and children are still jaywalking across San Diego Ave in front of the school. Passing between cars to cross the street is bound to lead to an accident some day. Please use the crosswalk at the corner of San Diego Ave and Bandini.
• Parents parking on the south side of San Diego Avenue then walking over to pick-up or drop-off children. We have seen too many near-misses when OTA parents slow down to park across the street– the road is already narrow due to cars lined up to enter the driveway– the cars following come close to rear-ending our parents. Please do not park unless you have an appointment at school or arrive after the gates are closed (Gates Close at 8:10 AM and 3:30 PM): it is much safer to drive into the driveway and drop off or pickup your child/ren from your car!

Thanks for your help keeping OTA students and families safe. We are working with the city to change our new School Zone Signs from No Stopping to No-Parking zone out front during school hours.

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Dear Parents / Guardians of OTA Students:

When your child is late to school, he or she must check in at the office before going to class.  Younger students will then be escorted to class by one of our office staff.

This procedure assures that the daily attendance is accurate and prevents the disruption that occurs when students and parents enter the classroom during instruction.

Also: please make every effort to get your child(ren) to school on time.  Your cooperation is greatly appreciated!

How can you prepare your children to do their best on the CST tests?

• Make sure they get a good night’s rest every night this week starting tonight: Sunday, May 6th.
• Make sure they eat a healthy breakfast every morning. Mr Major’s tip: blueberries are brain berries…

The week of May 7-11 will be a light work week. OTA will provide backup juice and snacks like oranges and other slow energy foods for all students– but feel free to send in your own extra snacks.

Acceptance notices will go out by May 11th. The Lottery is open to parents of prospective students and you are welcome to join us in Old Town Academy’s downstairs lunchroom–but attendance is not necessary. Everyone who submitted an application by March 9th has been entered into the lottery. Families will be notified if their child draws a number that gives them a place in the 2012-2013 class or if they are on the waiting list.

Thank you for your interest in Old Town Academy!

OTA held it’s 2012-2013 lottery yesterday for grades K-7.

Acceptance or Waiting List notices will go out by email on Friday, May 11.

Thank You for your interest in Old Town Academy.